THE PREVALENCE OF CENTRAL VENOUS CATHETERS AND LOWER ARM ARTERIOVENOUS FISTULAS DEPENDS ON DIFFERENT VASCULAR ACCESS MANAGEMENT POLICIES: A MULTICENTER ITALIAN STUDY

Abstract Background and Aims According to local resources, different vascular access (VA) procedures are employed in every country. In Italy, high variability exists in VA management among different dialysis units. In 2018, the DOPPS 5 study showed a declining prevalence of lower arm arteriovenous fistulas (AVF) in Europe with an increasing tendency of making upper arm AVFs and placing central venous catheters (CVCs). Accordingly, an Italian Survey in 2013 confirmed an increasing trend in CVCs use among different Italian regions. Hence, we made an epidemiologic, multicenter study to evaluate a possible relation between this trend and the variability of local VA management policies. Method VA data from 236 patients of prevalent patients were collected from five dialysis centers in the South of Italy. The prevalence of the various types of VAs was analyzed in relation to the following different VA surgery policies adopted in the participant centers: Results Age of patients was comparable among all centers while dialysis vintage was higher in center A (P<0.001). The prevalence of lower arm AVFs was significantly reduced In Center A (50.6%) and the prevalence of CVCs (25.8%) was significantly increased as compared to the Centers D-E. On the contrary the Centers D-E had the highest prevalence of lower arm AVF (70.8%) and the lowest of CVCs (12.3%), with a statistically significant difference as compared to Center A (Table 1 ). Conversely, no differences were noticed when comparing data from Centers B-C vs. Center A and vs. Centers D-E, although the prevalence of lower arm AVFs was slightly higher, but the difference was not significant, and that of CVCs was slightly lower as compared to Center A ,fully supported by the vascular surgeon (Figure 1 ). Conclusion The reduced tendency of lower arm fistulas and the increasing prevalence of CVCs showed by the DOPPS 5 study might not be applicable to all Italian regions. In our study of 5 dialysis units in the South of Italy, the stability of the nephrologist’s surgical activity probably played a crucial role in explaining the observed decreased use of CVCs with a steadily high prevalence (over 70%) of the lower arm fistulas, regardless of aging.